2. Know your personal/professional boundaries
Privacy settings are social media’s professional lifesaver. In career advice site Vault.com’s 2010 social media survey, 86% of employers thought candidates should take at least one action to make their profiles more employer-friendly. Your online persona shouldn’t be devoid of life but you should be aware of anything that can raise a red flag to potential employers. The most common mistakes made on social media sites Llarena shares are voicing controversial opinions to all your networks, revealing profile pictures and keeping up questionable photos. A word to the wise: If you have to ask if it’s ok, you should take it down.
She also warns job seekers to be mindful of the company they keep online. Don’t share your network and do not accept friend requests from just anyone. “Your friends can see your other friends’ profiles,” she says. “And as the saying goes, ‘dime con quien anda y te dire quien eres.
Know what everyone else can see by conducting an online search of your own name. Know thy online self and ensure you have a clean online name and rep by Googling yourself regularly to make sure you aren’t ashamed of the results.
3. Get a little help from your “Friends”
You already have a network of “friends” at your fingertips — be they real-life friends, family or acquaintances, ex-coworkers and bosses, or some cool dude you bonded with over Jason Statham action flicks at a party once. If you’re looking to expand your professional network, ask for an introduction to someone who’s had success in your dream job.
Be tactful when reaching out to potential professional contacts. That means that when messaging; skip the internet shorthand or textspeak. “When are you interacting or emailing with anyone related to your career think, ‘business casual,’” Llarena says. “Write succinctly, lose the abbreviations and recall your fourth grade grammar. These days jobs are found, offered and declined offline as well as online so err on the conservative side [when communicating] online.”
Be polite, honest and learn a thing or two about their interests via their profiles and online research. You may discover some common goals and your interest in them can pay off big time for you.